Fund for Yosemite Slaying Victim Surpasses $10,000

A memorial fund in honor of Joie Ruth Armstrong, a popular Yosemite naturalist who was found murdered in the national park last month, has received donations totaling more than $10,000 since its inception just over a week ago.

The fund will be used to promote Armstrong’s work--helping children to discover and care about nature and the outdoors.

“The fund grew out of our desire to do something to honor Joie and her work,” said Tanya Eckert of the Yosemite National Institutes. “Her family and friends and colleagues wanted to find the right tribute for her, and this seemed the right way to do it.”

The Yosemite National Institutes is a private, nonprofit educational organization that helps more than 34,000 schoolchildren each year to spend time living in and learning about unspoiled natural areas like Yosemite National Park. The group also has campuses in Marin Headlands, a seaside wilderness north of the Golden Gate Bridge, and in the Olympic National Forest in Washington State.

The children live in dorms in the parks and take classes led by volunteers such as Armstrong. Many of the children who studied with Armstrong remember her well, and have sought solace in honoring her work.

“A lot of the kids have been writing to us,” Eckert said. “It’s the parents too and her colleagues and friends. The response has been amazing.”

Armstrong, 26, was found slain July 21 in Yosemite National Park. Cary Stayner, a local handyman, has reportedly confessed to the crime. Stayner told authorities he killed Carole and Juliana Sund and Silvina Pelosso in February, sources said.

Since Armstrong’s death, many former pupils have written to the institutes to ask if they could donate money in her name.

“I was very sad when I heard that Joie Armstrong was murdered; I remember her from when my school stayed at the Yosemite Institute; I know she was a great naturalist and leader,” wrote a girl from San Francisco, her careful printing slanting across the page. “I feel extremely sad for all her family and friends, and for all the people who never got to meet her [and] I would like to make a donation to the park in her name.”

Colleagues feel the same way. The close-knit community at the national park, rocked by the Sund and Pelosso murders, was further devastated by Armstrong’s death.

Park employees say they take comfort in the memorial fund, which is a tribute to Armstrong’s spirit and a way to advance her goals.

“There are a number of park rangers here who were introduced to the whole concept of the outdoors by taking part in the Yosemite Institutes’ programs,” said Kendell Thompson, a park ranger. “The work that people like Joie do is very important--they teach children about the park and instill a sense of stewardship in upcoming generations. With this fund, her work goes on.”

Contributions may be sent to: The Joie Armstrong Memorial Fund,Yosemite National Institutes, Fort Cronkite, Building 1055, Sausalito, CA 94965. A Web page dedicated to Armstrong can be found atwww.yni.org/armstrong/index.htm